The Arizona Invitational Black Rodeo returns to WestWorld of Scottsdale, 16601 N. Pima Road, on Sept. 4 and 5 for its 15th year, over Labor Day weekend. Shows run at 7 p.m. both nights plus a 1 p.m. show on Saturday, with bull riding, roping, barrel racing and bronc riding. Kidz Rodeo Experience sessions run Sept. 4 at 9 and 10:30 a.m. and Sept. 5 at 10 a.m. It is the flagship event of Black Rodeo USA, a nonprofit founded in 2011.
Source: Black Rodeo USAThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Experience Scottsdale lists Fall Arizona Restaurant Week for Sept. 18 to 27. Participating restaurants serve three-course prix-fixe dinner menus at $33, $44 or $55 per person or couple. It runs twice a year, every spring and fall. Participating restaurants and menus will be announced no later than Sept. 1, and reservations are recommended through arizonarestaurantweek.com.
Source: Experience ScottsdaleThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Patch reports a new Whole Foods is targeting a fall 2026 opening at 7628 E. Indian School Road near Old Town Scottsdale, in a 35,222-square-foot building. Whole Foods has not announced an exact grand-opening date.
Source: PatchThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
The Arabian National Breeder Finals run Sept. 16 to 19 at WestWorld of Scottsdale, hosted by the Arabian Horse Association of Arizona. It is one of three horse events filling WestWorld this September, alongside the West's Most Western Rodeo on Sept. 11 to 13 and the AZQHA Arizona Fall Championship on Sept. 23 to 27.
Source: Experience ScottsdaleThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
PHOENIX magazine's July openings roundup lists Problem Restaurant & Lounge at 341 E. Sixth Avenue in Old Town, described as elevated cuisine and refined cocktails, and Bombay House at 8140 N. Hayden Road with a lunch and dinner buffet. Vilva's Indian Cuisine, fine-dining regional Indian, opened in June at 10434 E. Jomax Road.
Source: PHOENIX magazineThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
The city's news page posted "Scottsdale opens new Thompson Peak Dog Park" on Aug. 21. The city's project page puts it at three and a half acres of separate fenced and gated areas at 20199 N. 78th Pl., on the southwest corner of Hayden Road and Thompson Peak Parkway, with three play cells under shade canopies, benches, water fountains, waste stations, extra parking, a restroom building, a footbridge to the rest of the park and public art. The project is listed at $6.1 million.
Source: City of ScottsdaleAn existing L'AGENCE boutique; not the planned Scottsdale Quarter store. Image source: What Now Phoenix
The Los Angeles label is taking 2,408 square feet at Scottsdale Quarter, 15279 N. Scottsdale Rd., for its Arizona debut, with an early 2027 opening. L'AGENCE has been around since 2008 and runs boutiques in New York, Beverly Hills, Newport Beach, Houston and Chicago, plus Paris and Seoul. A brand rep said it is too soon to share more than that.
The Ends is open at 7137 E. Stetson Drive, Suite 12, serving dinner Sunday through Thursday from 4 to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 4 to 11 p.m., with happy hour every day from 4 to 6 and the full menu until close. The kitchen cooks in beef tallow and butter instead of seed oils, which Forking Scottsdale's first look called "Arizona's first seed-oil-free restaurant." The menu wanders from Japanese nigiri to Texas brisket to Laotian-inspired plates. Reservations run through OpenTable.
Source: The EndsThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Experience Scottsdale's calendar opens September with Above All Labor Day Weekend, Sept. 4 through 7 at The Remi Scottsdale Autograph Collection. Bourbon Steak follows with a Takeover Dinner Series night featuring Chef Erick Pineda at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess on Sept. 16.
Source: Experience ScottsdaleThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Experience Scottsdale's calendar lists a Fall League Baseball Exhibit at Scottsdale Stadium running Oct. 3 through Nov. 15, built around historic memorabilia and significant moments from the league. The same calendar has the Arabian National Breeder Finals at WestWorld Sept. 16 to 19 and the AZQHA Arizona Fall Championship Sept. 23 to 27.
Source: Experience ScottsdaleThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Fulton Homes' The West's Most Western Rodeo runs Sept. 11 to 13 at WestWorld of Scottsdale, according to the city's official events calendar. WestWorld follows it with the Arabian National Breeder Finals Sept. 16 to 19 and the AZQHA Arizona Fall Championship Sept. 23 to 27.
Source: Experience ScottsdaleThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
WalletHub put Scottsdale at No. 3 on its 2026 list of the happiest cities in America, comparing more than 180 major U.S. cities across “29 key indicators of happiness, including depression rates, income growth, and average daily leisure time.” Six Arizona cities made the top 30, and Scottsdale is the highest of them.
Source: AZ Big MediaThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Hill House Home, the New York brand known for the Nap Dress, signed for 2,250 square feet on 73rd Street at Scottsdale Quarter. It is the label's first store in Arizona and its first in the Southwest, opening later this summer or early fall. Los Angeles label L'AGENCE takes 2,408 square feet in The Quad in early 2027.
Source: KTARThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Bierman Autism Centers in Scottsdale is hosting a free sensory-friendly Touch-a-Truck on Saturday, Aug. 15 from 10 a.m. to noon, with fire trucks, police cars and other emergency vehicles for kids to explore. A free Pure Barre pop-up class runs the same morning from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Source: AllEvents ScottsdaleAn existing Toy Barn location; not the planned north Scottsdale project. Image source: What Now Phoenix
Toy Barn is planning its largest Arizona location at Mack Innovation Park near Loop 101 and Bell Road. The plan calls for 135 individually owned garage suites across six buildings, a clubhouse and a rooftop patio facing the McDowells. Phase 1 construction is slated to begin spring 2027.
Source: What Now PhoenixThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Ponderosa House opened in May at 4121 N. Marshall Way from Jacob Finley, the restaurateur behind Karsen's Grill. A casual cantina bar sits up front and an upscale dining room fills a renovated 1922 home with original wood floors and a red brick fireplace.
Source: Phoenix New TimesThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Summer on the Trail: Live Artist Fridays runs on Fridays through Sept. 4 in Scottsdale. WestWorld follows with Fulton Homes' The West's Most Western Rodeo, a PRCA-sanctioned event, Sept. 11 to 13.
Source: Experience ScottsdaleAn existing Porta Via restaurant; not the planned Scottsdale Fashion Square location. Image source: What Now Phoenix
Porta Via, the California bistro and bar founded in Beverly Hills in 1994, is planning its first Arizona location at Scottsdale Fashion Square, 7014 E. Camelback Road. The opening is set for 2027 and the team is still finalizing details.
Source: What Now PhoenixThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
HonorHealth's new 40,000-square-foot fitness center at Pima Center, on the west side of the Loop 101 at Pima Road, is set to open in August 2026. It includes an indoor track, heated lap and therapy pools, a sauna, pickleball courts, outdoor turf space, group fitness classes and a kids club, inside a larger 100,000-square-foot campus.
Source: KTAR NewsThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Night Trip brings deep house, tech house and techno DJs to WestWorld of Scottsdale on August 29 for a full-scale outdoor music festival under the desert night sky. It is one of the larger late-August additions to the Valley calendar.
Source: The Scout Guide PhoenixThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Scottsdale said on July 30 that initial funding from the voter-supported Parks and Preserve Sales Tax is already visible across city parks through tree planting, recreation improvements and landscape enhancements. Separately, the city is looking for residents to fill 17 openings across 11 advisory boards and commissions, with applications due August 28.
Smiling Moose Sandwich Grill, the Colorado-born sandwich brand, opens its first Valley location in Scottsdale on Monday, August 17, running 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. on opening day. Arizona Foothills Magazine reports the first 100 guests through the doors will receive a free six-inch Original Mo sandwich along with a $50 Adidas gift card. The ownership group includes NBA star James Harden, who said he is excited to be part of the team bringing the brand to Scottsdale.
Source: Arizona Foothills MagazineThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
Old Town Scottsdale's events listing has Bar Brawl at Hotel Valley Ho running Sundays from July 26 through Aug. 23, a bartender competition with live music and refreshments. Wilde Meyer Gallery's Vibrant Visions exhibition also runs the month of August at 4142 N. Marshall Way, open Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Source: Old Town ScottsdaleThe Scottsdale Waterfront. Area context photograph; the business or event in this story is not pictured. Photo: Joseph Plotz · CC BY 3.0
